Scallop Congee is one of my most oft cooked congee for weekend lunch. Okay, make it Scallop Porridge for those who are more familiar with the word porridge. Actually, it’s the same. And whichever name you call it, it will still taste as good though I suspect the word “congee” sounds much more sophisticated and refined to be used.

For this congee, I use dried scallops which I purchase from the wet market. You can get them from supermarkets and some chinese herbal shops or even, dried sea produce. I use those which are relatively small in size – perhaps about the size of half a pop corn as they are cheap and easy to cook.

In the picture above, the scallop congee appears white in colour. I have a habit of eating my scallop congee with an egg. What I would do is to break an egg into the bowl and pour boiling congee over it before giving it a good stir. The egg gives the congee a much smoother texture and definitely tastes better. Game for a bowl? 🙂

Shredded Chicken Porridge is sold by many hawkers in Malaysia, usually by those who also sell Pork Porridge. Oh, by the way, in Malaysia we call congee as porridge. I understand that in the West, porridge refers more to soft food made by boiling oatmeal or other grains. Here, rice is used instead.

Anyway, back to our Shredded Chicken Porridge. When I prepared this batch (which gave me about 5 rice bowl-fulls), I actually worked harder to get a stronger tasting porridge than usual. On that morning, I bought 3 legs of chicken and got it deboned. I boiled the bones for about 1 hour and used the stock to cook the porridge. I only used meat from 1 leg of chicken and kept the other 2 legs for other use. If you are not keen to spend the extra work boiling chicken stock, you can use plain water instead.

The usual condiments to Shredded Chicken Porridge are ginger, chopped spring onions and fried shallots. Just sprinkle them liberally and add a drop or two of sesame oil and you will get a really nice and homely tasting porridge. By the way, if you prefer to have a smooth consistency, I would suggest that you first soak the rice for 15 minutes and drain before cooking it. Once cooked, and before adding anything else into the porridge, switch off the flame and allow the porridge to cool down for about 15 minutes. Then add some water and reboil whilst stirring. You should get really smooth porridge then.

This recipe is nostalgic because it is what I used to have regularly during my schooling days. Sweet Potato Porridge is basically an “enhanced” porridge with the former adding sweetness to the porridge. It is, however, not eaten on its own. Rather, some side dishes compliments this simple but delicious porridge eg. ikan bilis snack or minced pork balls with preserved black beans. I usually have 2 bowls of this as the sweet potato somehow makes the porridge more appetising.

Mum usually uses the yellow-coloured sweet potato, probably because that is what is commonly found in the market. I think any type of sweet potato would do the trick. Try to get those which are less fibrous as it can be an irritant to have them in your mouth. This porridge is very simple to cook. You just add sweet potatoes into the porridge as you cook it! Yes, it is that simple! Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s cook porridge / congee today! I like to eat porridge especially on for lunch on weekends. It is light and suitable on hot days especially when you want to eat something non-oily. When I plan to cook porridge for lunch, I will usually drop by at the wet market in the morning to buy yau char kuey (fritters) to compliment the porridge.

Porridge can be cooked with many different types of ingredients. Actually, the types of ingredients are only limited by one’s imagination. Here, I have added minced pork, pork liver and dried oysters. The dried oysters add a little sweetness to the porridge whilst the other ingredients each have its individual taste. I also like to break an egg into the bowl prior to pouring boiling hot porridge over it. It is a taste I acquired since young (runs in the family).

Give this recipe a try. If some of the ingredients are not your type, feel free to omit them or substitute them. If you need clarification, just post them in the comments below.

This is my recipe for Pork and Dried Oyster Porridge

Ingredients

Approximately 50 to 100 grammes of rice (rinsed once and pre-soaked in water for 30 minutes)

100 grammes of minced pork

50 grammes of pork liver (sliced)

5 to 10 pieces of dried oyster (pre-soaked in water for 30 minutes and cut into half)

Place water in a cooking pot and add rice. Cover with lid and bring to boil. Unlid and reduce heat to medium low and cook till rice becomes porridge / cooked and broken (approximately 20 minutes). Add a little hot water when it becomes too dry. You shall strive to cook it a little runny in consistency. Midway through cooking, add the oysters.

Meanwhile, place cut yau char kuey into a toaster oven to toast it till crisp. At the same time, heat oil in wok and fry the sliced shallots till golden brown. Remove fried shallots and set aside.

Once you have cooked the porridge, bring to boil again and add the minced pork (using a teaspoon, scoop one teaspoon of minced meat at a time) and stir. After you have finished adding all the minced pork, add the pork liver and stir the porridge till pork liver is cooked (no more blood oozing out – yes, I know it sounds gross but it’s delicious, I tell you!). Add seasoning to taste.

To serve, break an egg into bowl (you will have about 3 servings here) and pour boiling hot porridge over the egg. Drizzle one teaspoon sesame oil and add garnishing. If you still have some of the oil used to fry the shallots, drizzle a bit as well. Finally, sprinkle the toasted and crispy yau char kuey and fried shallots over the porridge.

Enjoy! I know it may sound a bit complicated but it is actually very easy to cook if you try it.

My Daily Bread

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. (Galatians 5:16-17, ESV)